Today a friend and I checked out Cheyenne Shadows Golf Club, an Army golf course. He was previously in the Navy – probably a bad word at an Army post – and we’ve been able to play a couple military courses together recently.

Cheyenne Shadows is located on the south side of Colorado Springs in Fort Carson. The course gets its name from Cheyenne Mountain which rises to the west. To my civilian mind, the mountain looks like a typical mountain in Colorado, but it isn’t. There are all sorts of interesting articles and videos out there about the Cheyenne Mountain complex.

As far as the course goes, it looks like Dick Phelps – who seems to have done plenty of work in Colorado – gets credit for the design. This is the fifth or sixth military course that I’ve played and while the designs aren’t overly dramatic, the courses are usually relaxing to play and fairly forgiving. I’d certainly say that was the case at Cheyenne Shadows.

We played the blue tees which are 72.2/137/7206. From there the toughest thing about the course – at least for me – was its length. Even at 6,000 feet there are some seriously long holes. For example, the 3rd is a 474 yard par-4. The 11th is a massive 651 yard par-5 that was playing into the wind for our round. Awesome. And the 12th is another long par-4 at 483 yards. The greens are also tricky and break away from the mountain.

If you can find a way to navigate the length then you might be able to put together a good score. The bunkering is light, but functional. There are a few doglegs but most of the course is right in front of you. No tricks. And, there isn’t much in the way of lost ball trouble unless you hit a really wild shot. If you do, then there is tall grass to deal with.

The most memorable aspect about the course is the nearby scenery. The course sits at the edge of the Rocky Mountains and the views of Cheyenne Mountain are sweet. The par-4 4th and par-3 5th are the signature holes. The 4th is an uphill par-4 with the mountain looming in the background. The 5th is a downhill par-3 that requires a good guess to pick the right club.

I paid about $55 to ride on a weekend and considering the price, the course was a very good value. The turf was lush and well maintained. The tees had plenty of grass, the ball sat up in the fairways, and the greens rolled well. I was only in one bunker and it had good sand.

If you or someone you know has military access then I’d recommend a round at Cheyenne Shadows. The design probably won’t wow you, but it is an interesting enough layout with great scenery. Considering how much golf costs these days, it was refreshing to pay so little for a quality round.

Course Pictures (click any picture to scroll through the gallery):